Investment, Disinvestment, and Engels' Solution: Understanding the Role of Housing in Capitalism

Frederick Engels is best known for his theoretical and political work he undertook alongside his lifelong comrade, Karl Marx. Yet Engels made other important contributions to the workers’ movement of his time and ever since. During a moment in which millions of workers in the U.S. have been thrown out of work as a result of the intersection of the Covid-19 pandemic and an overdue capitalist economic crisis, Engels’ 1872 pamphlet, “The Housing Question,” bears particular import. While there have been important developments in capitalist housing markets, like Collateralized Debt Obligations and subprime mortgages, that Engels couldn’t predict, the pamphlet is still crucial to understanding struggles over housing today. Read the full article here: https://liberationschool.org/engels-capitalism-and-housing/